After consoling them, she lured the kids to sleep and went to bathe. When she came back to the room, everywhere was quiet and she figured out the mess had been cleared. She approached the bed where the kids were lying and sat down. She wanted to sleep but the door was pushed open and Mu Wei walked in looking neat. It was obvious he had taken a bathe and changed his clothes.
He walked to her and pulled her, with a gasp she found herself on his laps. She tried to stand up but he held her down and buried his head in the crook of her neck. She could only try to talk to him.
"Mu Wei, let me go!"
"Please... Just for a while"
Su Xiao didn't know if it was the pleading tone or the vulnerability he was showing tonight but she softened. She let him hold her as he breathed in her scent, she found herself relaxing too and resting her head on his chest. They enjoyed the silence before he spoke up.
"I have never been so scared in my life since today"
"Mu Wei, I..."
"Shh.. Let me speak please?"
"Okay"
Getting her confirmation he continued.
"I have seen a lot of people die in front of me. But none had been able to shake me as much as you did Su Xiao"
It was the first time she heard him say her name with so much longing and reverence. She didn't know what to say as her heart beat sped up thudding in her chest. He continued still not looking at her.
"Please.. Don't do that again. My heart can't beat it"
"I promise you, I won't do it again"
In the end she compromised. He finally lifted his head and looked her in the eyes. There was so much intensity in those eyes that she was almost left breathless. His grey eyes seemed darker and dangerously stimulating. Su Xiao felt a blush creep to her face and was thankful to the night that concealed it.
"Can you let me down now?"
Instead of replying he gripped her waist tighter and pulled her closer to him. Su Xiao was startled by the sudden movement when he stood up still carrying her. She instinctively clung to his neck to avoid falling down and held her tightly. She bit her lips to avoid the thoughts rushing into her mind at their posture.
Behave yourself
She mentally scolded herself and returned her attention to the man who had made her sit on the window and stood between her legs. For an ancient man, he was behaving too intimately and she found it surprising. Mu Wei couldn't care about the woman's thought as he embraced her and breathed in her unique scent. He was finally so close to her and his heart felt content. The nagging feeling in his heart had disappeared left with only satisfaction.
He felt greedier and wanted nothing more than to merge her completely into his body. He knew he had feelings for her but didn't expect it to reach this point that he couldn't live without her.
Just what had she done to him.
After a while, she yawned and he knew it was time to release her. Although reluctant he released her and she jumped down. She looked at him and flashed him a smile before whispering
"Good night, Mu Wei"
"Good night, Su Xiao"
She climbed the bed and slept off. Mu Wei savoured the feeling of her in his arms before laying on the other side of the bed and sleeping with a peaceful smile on his face. Everyone slept peacefully knowing that there was no longer any need to worry or being tensed about a sudden attack.
On Lu Dan's side, the casualty was big so they gathered the bodies and disposed them. After recording the dead ones, he ordered everyone to rest while he went to take a bath. After that, he leaned on the bed and thought about the ambush today and he shuddered at the thought of what if Su Xiao wasn't there. Those people were fierce and ruthless clearly intending to massacre them all. They had to leave this place quickly and get to the next pass so his job could be considered done. After calculating their next step he fell asleep.
The next morning, everyone eagerly got ready to leave this place. The previous attack had terrified them and adding to the loss of loved ones they were extremely reluctant to stay any longer. Without even needing the help of the ballifs,they packed up and prepared to set off. Su Xiao had woken everyone up earlier and had everyone washed up and dressed. She took out their cart and the horses and every belongings and packed it up. They joined the other refugees and started moving.
The next stop was obviously the Yan City so they continued on their way only stopping when they wanted to eat or drink water. Unfortunately, the sky turned gloomy and their countenance changed knowing what it meant. Everyone sped up hoping to arrive at the city which was only five shichen from here. Su Xiao knew that they wouldn't be able to make it and started looking around for any suitable cave they could hide. She wore her straw coat and told Mu Wei before sprinting ahead.
As she walked the lonely path she found some mushrooms and herbs and put them into her space. She took out the detector and tracked as she walked. She found five hares and three pheasant chicken with ten eggs who were hiding from the rain and took them all. As she walked she arrived at the foot of a mountain which was shrouded in fog obviously showing signs of being abandoned for long. She carefully walked up and found a village within it but was strangely silent. After scouting the whole place she discovered it had been abandoned probably because of famine.
It had more than twenty household and would be enough for everyone. Without wasting time, she went back the same way and informed Lu Dan and they followed her. The rain had become heavy and everywhere darker so they hurried up and arrived at night. Everyone was assigned to a house while Su Xiao took them to the village chief house which was made of black bricks showing that he was a bit wealthy. They settled inside while Li Tuo packed the carriage in the cow shed which was built sturdily and had a roof.Su Xiao feed the horse and urged everyone to change to avoid catching a cold.